Chasing Far Off Memories
by KC Brennan
Summary: Oneshots. Axel can no longer traverse through the corridors of darkness, and the worlds have not opened up their paths to him.
1. What Are The Odds?

**What Are the Odds?**

"Ahh… Tis no better fate than to bask in the presence of so many fine male specimens."

Xion looked to her left at Selphie, the brunette practically melting as she gazed upon the 'many hot guys' that were sitting in the booths around them. Ignoring her, for this was a common occurrence that she need not concern herself with; she turned to Kari and Olette, who were sitting across from her. "Does she really need to do this every time?"

Olette shrugged empathetically, way too used to Selphie's actions to really do anything. Kairi chuckled, a complacent grin on her face. "C'mon, Xion, you know how Selphie is. I'd be worried if she didn't gawk at every hot guy that walked by."

Xion sighed, placing her elbow on the table and leaning her chin on her hand. "I know, but she's supposed to be in love with Irvine, right? Why doesn't she just tell him how she feels?"

Selphie, unfortunately, chose that time to tune back into the conversation, casting a glare towards Xion. "It's not that easy, you know. You can't just walk up to someone and confess you love for them!"

Xion cast her gaze down, avoiding Selphie's piercing stare, mumbling uncertainly under her breath. "I don't think it's that hard…"

Selphie pursued her lips defiantly. "Fine, if you think it's so easy, then how about you try it!"

Snapping her head sharply to the side, Xion gaped at Selphie with incredulous eyes. "Excuse me?"

Selphie crossed her arms over her chest. "You heard me. I dare you to walk up to a guy in this restaurant and declare you undying love for him. Oh, and I get to pick the guy."

"Why should I?"

"How about this," Kairi leaned towards them, diffusing the situation, "if Xion wins the bet, Selphie has to finally tell Irvine her feelings."

"What do I get if I win?"

Kairi turned to Selphie, considering. "You get to make Xion do whatever you want for the rest of the weekend."

Selphie grinned at that, a maniacal gleam in her eyes. Xion furrowed her brow. There wasn't really a lot she was getting out of this bet, but she really did want Selphie to tell Irvine how she felt. The brunette had harbored her secret crush for years, and, if the long looks Irvine gave Selphie when he knew she wasn't looking were anything to go by, the boy reciprocated her feelings.

It would make both of them so happy, and all she had to do was put aside her pride for a few minutes…

"I'll do it."

Selphie squealed, clapping her hands together happily. Kairi and Olette shared a look with Xion, probably guessing her reasons. Olette was able to mouth a silent thank you to her before Selphie grabbed Xion's arm, gaining her attention. "Alright then, I have the perfect guy for you to confess to." She gestured to one of the booths on the other side of the restaurant, sitting by himself with his hood covering his face. "See loner boy over there? Yeah, he's the lucky guy."

Not really caring at this point, Xion scooted out of the seat and began walking over to the boy, Kairi and Olette wishing her a hasty "good luck!" over her shoulder. Of course, while she was maneuvering past some of the tables, Xion could feel her hands start to swept, her body betraying her as her nerves kicked in. She tended to avoid confrontations such as these, and she wished that this time was no exception, but it was for a good cause. Selphie and Irvine deserved to be together, and all she had to do was go through one minor embarrassment to accomplish that goal.

Putting aside her pride, Xion tapped the boy on the shoulder, a cute smile on her face. "Excuse me, but I saw you from across the room, and I was wondering if you might want to go out on a date with me."

The boy tilted his head toward, face still hidden by his sweatshirt's hood, before lifting up a hand to remove the hood from his face. Xion froze, mouth going slack and eyes widening as she took in the spiky red head that was smirking at her with amusement dancing in his eyes. "Axel?"

Axel's smirk only grew as he leaned around, waving a lazy hand towards Selphie, Kairi, and Olette - who no doubt looked as shocked as she did - before turning his attention back to her. "So, you saw me from across the room and just _had_ to ask me out on a date? I never thought you had it in you, Xion."

The black-haired girl in question blanched, fumbling over words as she tried to get out a response. Before she could become coherent enough to form a sentence, though, Axel grabbed one of her hands and brought it to his lips, placing a sound kiss on the back of her hand before standing up, placing a few bills on the table as he watched the last remains of her malfunctioning brain fell apart through half-lidded eyes.

Ruffling her hair, he sauntered towards the door, stopping only to glance over his shoulder at the when he reached them. "Oh, and I'll be around on Friday at three to pick you up for our date. Have fun explaining to Sora, Ventus, and Roxas why their little sister won't be available." With that, he departed with a lazy wave in her direction.

Xion continued to stand there, working to put the pieces of the pile of mush that was her brain back together. When she was finally able to do so, only one coherent thought was able to resound in her brain.

Out of all the people she could have met, she had to meet up with the one she secretly had feelings for?


	2. Theme 228: Acceptance

**Theme #228 - Acceptance**

Kairi brought her legs up to her chest and laid her chin upon her knees, watching Sora and Riku - she had met the two of them when she awoke, washed up on the shore of Play Island - through the living room window as they tried to untangle the complicated knot tying their boat to the dock. Or, at least, Riku was, Sora was too busy yelling angrily out towards the other boat, which had already cast off and contained the laughing forms of Selphie, Tidus, and Wakka - she remembered seeing them around town sometimes.

Kairi gripped the edges of her dress tighter, looking down at her shoes. She had been here for four days now, staying with the mayor in the meantime, and she was starting to feel very lonely. The people of this town, though very kind and accommodating towards her, treated her with a polite wariness that always made her feel singled out. She was a stranger to the people of the island, a kind of stranger that people tended to shy away from, and it was beginning to wear on her.

She didn't even have any memories to comfort her…

Kairi blinked away the tears forming at the corners of her eyes, feeling someone's gaze on her - it was hard to admit, but she was starting to recognize the light pressure that only someone else's staring could produce. She glanced up and was surprised to find that it was Sora that was staring at her. The boy was still standing by the boats, knee deep in the cool ocean water, but now he was turned towards her instead of the boat filled with the rest of his friends, watching her wide, curious blue eyes.

Kairi's shoulders sagged a bit as she made eye contact with the boy. Whenever the islanders realized she had caught them staring at her, then they would immediately look away in shame, busying themselves with whatever task lay before them. She didn't want Sora to be like that…

She was pleasantly surprised, though, when Sora blinked, but continued to stare openly at her, breaking the contact only when he needed to blink. Something sparked within her, and she lifted a hand from her knees to wave at him, a small smile flitting at the corners of her mouth, widening when she received a large grin and a wave in return.

Kairi watched as Sora turned away from her, goofy grin still in place on his face, and said something to Riku, who was still attempting to untangle the knot and had made a lot of progress, but stopped to turn and look at Sora. They exchanged a few more words, Sora's grin growing with each passing second, before the brunette finally through his hands in the air, most likely in response to something Riku had said, and started running over to her.

He slid to a stop in front of her, a happy smile on his face as he extended a hand towards her. "Would you like to play on the island with us, Kairi?"

Kairi stared up at him, watching as his smile slipped just the slightest, the thought that she might not actually want to seeming to finally occur to him, his eyes flitting through emotions before finally settling on questioning.

Not once did she see an ounce of shame flit by...

Hesitantly, her hand shaking at the thought that he might suddenly reject her, Kairi placed her hand in Sora's, and watched as the grin resurfaced on his face and the happiness dance in his eyes as he pulled her to her feet.


	3. IPod Shuffle 01: AxelXion

**IPod Shuffle 01 - Axel/Xion**

**You're Not Alone** by Saosin

Xion flailed her arms around, the freezing water weighing heavily on her body as she attempted to swim back to the surface, only to be stopped by the ice that layered the top. She beat furiously against it, trying in futile attempt to break through the ice and escape.

It was when the edges of her vision started to fray, her arms becoming too heavy for her to move them any longer, when the ice above her shattered. Two gloved hands reached under for her, hooking underneath her arms and pulling her out of the water and into a firm, yet very warm, chest. Xion could feel herself being dragged, head cradled lightly in one hand, and it wasn't until she felt the cold, powdery snow underneath her did she realize that she had been dragged off the lake and onto the snow-covered ground.

Her rescuer moved her so that she was sitting in his/her lap, keeping her head against his/her chest with one arm wrapped securely around her, the other reaching somewhere behind her. "Geez, can't you even take care of yourself? I can't take my eyes off you for one second, can I?"

Xion looked up, or at least as much as she could with her face pressed against _his_ chest, water dripping past her surprised eyes. "Axel?"

Axel glanced down to meet her eyes, looking away to lift a blanket - what he was probably reaching for before, she realized - and wrap it securely around her small frame, proceeding to bury his face into her still-wet hair, pressing a kiss to her scalp. "Don't you _ever_ do that again."

Xion leaned into him, relishing in the warmth he provided. "I'm sorry, Axel."

-X-

**It's My Life/Confessions, Pt. II (Glee Cast Version)** by Glee Cast

Tempers flared hotly, the tension crackling in the air between the two of them as Xion and Roxas glared heatedly at each other. Sora and Ventus stood off to the side, very unwilling to get involved with their siblings' spat less they walk away with bodily harm.

Xion placed her hands on her hips, her skirt rustling faintly as she tilted her chin up defiantly. "No matter what you say, Roxas, I am _going_ to Kairi's party with Axel on Friday, and there's nothing you can do about it."

Roxas threw his arms in the air in exasperation. "B-But your two years younger than him! What if he tries something?"

"He's your _best friend_, Roxas! What do you _think_ he's going to do?"

Roxas huffed, scrambling for words, but Xion cut him off by stepping closer to him. "This is my life, Roxas, and you can't do anything to stop me!" With that, the short-haired girl turned on her heel, marching up the stairs and into her room, slamming the door in the process.

-X-

**Rockstar** by Hannah Montana

She watches him from on top of the stage, her voice reverberating throughout the auditorium as she sways side in front of the microphone. The crowd is screaming, cheering for her and the band, but Xion only has eyes for him, waiting nervously for his reaction.

She is granted reprieve by the smile - not a smirk - that stretches across his face with something akin to pride shining in his eyes. When the song ends, Axel claps long and loud with the rest of the fans, words only meant for her forming on his lips.

_That's my girl._

-X-

**Monster** by Meg & Dia

Xion pressed herself farther into the closet, watching through a crack in the door as Xemnas skulked around the classroom, no doubt searching for her new hiding place. She hugs herself tightly, trying very hard not to look at the long scratches running up the length of her arms that he made when she tried to escape.

When she sees that he's getting far too close for comfort, Xion rearranges the supplies she's hiding behind, praying that he won't see her even if he looks in the storage closet. She holds her breath when he stops in front of the closet, his shadow falling across her feet, and Xion closes her eyes, thinking that maybe, just maybe, she will be spared.

A loud crash makes its way to her ears, accompanied by a rallying war cry, but it sounds more like something being tackled to the ground than the doors being thrown open. Xion opens her eyes just a sliver, terrified of what she might see, and shifts to peek through the crack of the still-closed doors when they are thrown open.

Reflexively, she lets out a scream, blindly throwing an eraser - it the first thing she could get her hands on - at her attacker, only for him to dodge and reach a hesitant hand toward her. She thrashed against his grip, knocking mops and brooms over in the confined space, when a familiar voice reached her ears. "Xion! Xion, calm down, it's me! Axel! Geez, I thought you said you had me memorized?"

Xion stilled, staring up at the red-head through her tears, not even realizing that she had started crying. "A-Axel?"

Axel sat down, bringing a hand up to scratch the back of his head while he draped the other across his knee. "Yeah, it's me."

Hastily, not knowing what came over her, Xion clambered out of the closet and threw herself at him, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder, sobbing. "I was - s-so scared!"

Startled but not shaken, Axel brought up a hand to rub her back. "I know."

Somewhere to the right of her, someone cleared their throat. Xion lifted her head sharply, afraid that Xemnas would be standing right there, but all she saw was Sora and Roxas, the former sitting Indian-style on the back of a face-down and unconscious Xemnas, grinning cheekily at them, while the latter stood there awkwardly, a sheepish grin on his face. Roxas lifted a hand to scratch the back of his head, almost identical to the way his best friend did, and glanced at the two of them worriedly. "Are we interrupting something?"

At that, Xion broke out into hysterical sobs, prompting both Sora and Roxas to jump up and rush over to their sister, frantically trying to calm her.

-X-

**On The Way Down** by Ryan Cabrera

The ground beneath his feet crumbles, and Axel has to shove one of his chakram into the side of the cliff to keep from plummeting to the ground, the edges of his black coat fluttering in the breeze. Sighing, thoroughly annoyed with himself for getting into this situation, the spiky red-head lifts a hand to summon a corridor of darkness to get him out of this mess when he feels something grab onto the hand that's holding onto his chakram.

Glancing up, Axel is vaguely surprised to see Xion leaning precariously over the cliff edge, gripping his hand with both of hers, looking terrified out of her mind but determined not to let go. "Don't worry, Axel, I'll get you out of there in a second."

Axel quirks an eyebrow at her, taken aback by the amount of conflicting emotions swimming around in her eyes as she tries to pull him up, despite him obviously being too heavy for her to lift being the small sprite she is. Not really wanting her to continue her attempts in vain - she really doesn't remember that he could get out of this situation quite easily without her help - he proceeds to try and tell her just that when the ground beneath Xion started to crack.

Only having enough time to look into Xion's eyes, watching the shock widen her eyes and incapacitate the rest of her body save for her mouth, which opened in a silent scream as the cliff face fell away, sending her over the edge. Axel reached for her, barely able to grab onto her arm when his chakram broke away from the cliff, sending the two of them falling to the far-off ground below.

Cursing, Axel tried to wrap himself around Xion, preparing to cushion her fall when they finally hit the ground, but was shocked to find himself pushed away, Xion throwing one arm out and summoning a corridor of darkness below them. They fell through, rushing through the onslaught of darkness before they were spat out again, this time back on top of the cliff and far away from the edge of the cliff.

Panting, the two of them lay side by side - they had been separated from each other when they passed through the corridor - before Xion sat up and came over to kneel by him, face looking thoroughly fatigued. "You know, Axel, I'm surprised you didn't try to use the corridors to try and escape. I guess this is why you wanted me to come along on the mission with you today."

Dumfounded, Axel gave her a blank stare as Xion looked confusedly at him. "What?"


	4. Theme 503: Storytelling

**Theme 503 - Storytelling**

Sora blinked once, twice, and then seemed to settle on staring in confusion. One hand on the branch he was sitting on while the other was placed on the trunk of the tree. He was leaning forward slightly, his feet already dangling in front of him in preparation to jump down to the ground.

Kairi bit her lip, eyes downcast as she leaned against her windowsill, feeling uncomfortable with the way Sora was just _staring_ at her. It didn't help that Riku, who was sitting on another branch, this one a little lower than Sora's and on the other side of the tree, was also gazing at her, but his held a quiet intensity that made something shift in the bottom of her stomach.

It was Sora who finally broke the silence, in a careful tone that was meant to keep the tension from overwhelming them. "You… want me to tell you… about my adventures?"

Kairi twisted her hands together, still very aware of Riku's stare, but gave a small nod in answer. Sora tilted his head down at this, contemplating, and then turned to the right to glance at Riku. The silver-haired boy in question met his gaze, a silent conversation filled with questions, worries, and answers passing between them, until Riku simply shrugs at him, a small smile playing across his mouth.

He can handle it.

Sora smiles at that - not a full blow grin, for there is still the underlying worry that comes with what he is about to do - and turns back to Kairi. "Sure, we can do that."

Kairi finally glances up, also smiling, though hers is filled with relief more than anything else. Sora nods behind her. "Now go ask your dad if you can go out. We still need to head over to Play Island before it gets too hot out." With that, he lifts himself off the branch and jumps down.

-X-

Sora plops down on the sand, folding his legs Indian-style and placing his hands on his knees, grinning at them sheepishly. "So… I really don't know where to start."

Kairi shifts from her position of leaning against Riku's side, lifting her head off his shoulder to glance up at him in question. Riku purses his lips, noting that Sora is also staring at him, and knows that this is really a question that he must answer.

There is the true beginning of the story, in which the three of them decided to build a raft and travel to other worlds. But no one really wants to talk about that, least of all him. It's not because Sora and Kairi blame him for what happened - something he really doesn't understand - but because it is something that has already been forgiven and no longer needs to be talked about.

Making a decision, Riku meets Sora's gaze, bringing a hand up to pat Kairi on the head. "You said the first world you went to was Traverse Town, right? Start there."

It all becomes easy from there.

Sora launches into his stories, animatedly using his hands to sometimes get his point across, and Kairi and Riku and Kairi smile at the brunette's exuberance. There are some points where Sora falters, not knowing how to get around a dark point in the story, like when something he says uncovers a bad memory that casts a shadow over Riku's face, or when Kairi stiffens and clutches her hands together when she realizes where one of his scars came from, but the three of them are able to work together and get through it, and Sora continues the story.

They don't realize how late it is until Sora, who was in the middle of describing how nasty the inside of Monstro's mouth smelled, stopped and looked over to the setting sun. "It's sunset already?" There is a kind of wonderment in his voice, as if he really didn't realize how late it was getting, and looks a little crestfallen that he can't continue.

Kairi reaches over, placing her hand on his knee and keeping it there until Sora looks back at her, and then smiles at him. "We can continue the story tomorrow, Sora. Don't worry about it."

Sora grins, nodding at her, excited that he will get the chance to continue. Riku smiles as well, reaching down to grab Kairi's hand and extending the other out to Sora. "Of course, the way Sora's telling it, we'll need more than just tomorrow to finish the story."

Sora smiles sheepishly, grabbing Riku's hand and completing the circle. "We have all the time in the world."


	5. Taken by Surprise

**Kingdom Hearts - Taken by Surprise**

In, Out. In, Out.

Kairi stared down at her hands, clutched together and fingers intertwined in a silent prayer, faintly aware that her knuckles were beginning to turn white. She continued to breathe in through her nose and out through her mouth, just the way Riku and Sora - the very thought of him sent such a sharp pang to her heart that she had to work to keep breathing at all - taught her to do whenever she started to panic.

In, Out. In, Out.

Faint movement out of the corner of her eye reminded her that Riku was pacing to her right. He looked murderous, agitated, and faintly remorseful, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.

In, Out. In, Out.

Every once in a while there was a faint cry from behind the closed, mahogany door, which would make Riku pause as both he and Kairi turned towards it. They waited for a few seconds, the tension thick in the air, but when nothing happened, Riku would return to his pacing, his expression darker than before, and Kairi would turn back to staring at the hands in her lap.

In, Out. In, Out.

Leon and Cloud were still outside fighting off the remaining Heartless from the large-scale attack that had befallen the town. Yuffie was working with Tifa to track down the evacuated citizens and guide them back to their homes, which they had abandoned in the wake of the attack.

In, Out. In, Out.

Truthfully, it was probably due to the panicked evacuation that this had happened in the first place.

In, Out. In, Out.

"_Kairi, Riku and I are going to go help Leon with the Heartless. Can you stay here and help the girls evacuate the town?"_

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

_As she continued to usher people towards the castle, keeping an eye out for any Heartless that might come across their path, she caught a glimpse of him. He had gotten separated from Riku, and was fighting a rather overwhelming horde of Shadows by himself._

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

_Distracted as he was, he didn't realize some were gathering below his feet, creating a massive black hole right below him. She realized too late what was about to happen, and that there was no one there who could stop it from happening._

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

It was understandable, really. Instead of just concentrating on fighting the Heartless, like they had in the past, the Restoration Committee now had to worry about evacuation and protection detail. They just didn't know they'd be stretched a little thin was another large attack.

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

_Sora was caught by surprise as the black mass of Shadows beneath his feet swelled up around him. She watched with horror as the darkness began to wrapped around his arms and legs, even reaching up to circle his neck, to hold him in place. He struggled, twisting the Keyblade to destroy any Shadow he could get to._

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

_Sora's eyes widened, going blank with pain as a shock of darkness ripped through him. He stumbled down, the darkness slowly fading away into the ground, forming back into Shadows, until he finally fell to the ground, mouth moving wordlessly. A shrill scream split through the air, and it took Kairi a while to realize that she was the one screaming._

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

Riku had quickly arrived on the scene, no doubt called by her shriek of terror, swinging Way to Dawn rapidly through the twitching Shadows, barely restrained blood thirst in his eyes. Kairi had sprinted down towards them, shouting Sora's name in a chant to keep hold of her sanity. Riku was already shaking him frantically, trying to get him to say something, but Sora had already slipped into unconsciousness, eyes still disturbingly blank.

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

They had quickly gathered Sora up, lifting him up and draping him over Riku's back, as they all but ran back to Merlin's House, where they knew Aerith would be waiting for them with Cid and Merlin. When the two of them arrived, panting and practically begging for someone to help Sora, Aerith and Merlin had quickly taken control of the situation, directing Riku to bring Sora into the back room. It was then that Aerith, as kindly as possible, asked Riku and Kairi to wait outside, her hands already glowing with green energy.

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

Kairi wanted to protest, and almost did so with a squeak in her voice, but Riku had placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her, solemnly agreeing to request even though he looked like he desperately wanted not to.

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

The wait had started then, the air growing tenser with every minute that passed by with no word of how Sora was doing. It was broken briefly when Cid had attempted to be reassuring, but he had given up rather quickly when he realized he wasn't helping and offered to get ahold of everyone else and let them know what was going on. Kairi was silently thankful to him for that, but couldn't get the words out even if she tried.

In, Out. In, Out. In, Out.

Now if only Aerith would walk through that door and announce that everything was alri-

Kairi jumped as the door really did swing open, revealing a rather tired but content Aerith. The Healer looked up, taking in the still form of Kairi and Riku, both with the same question in their eyes, and smiled reassuringly at them. "Everything's going to be okay. Sora's going to be fine now."

The relief in the room was almost palpable. Kairi stood up from her chair, not even noticing as the blood rushed back into her numb hands, and turned to share a relieved smile with Riku. The silver-haired boy turned back to Aerith, looking a lot more relaxed than when he first burst into the house. "Are we allowed to see him?"

Aerith nodded, stepping aside to let them walk through the door. They did so quite quickly, making their way down the hall, which hosted a number of other doors that led to the rooms of the Restoration Committee, until they reached the room Sora was in. Hesitantly, quietly, Kairi peeked her head in, sensing Riku doing the same over her head.

Sora was lying down in a bed with his eyes closed, a thin sheen of sweat layering his face and his mouth set in small frown, but he twitched and turned in their direction, almost as if he sensed they were there, as his blue eyes fluttered open and settled on them. A small smile appeared on his face, and he raised a weary hand in greeting. "Hey, guys. How is everything?"

The two moved forward, Kairi sitting down on the edge of the bed while kneeled down on the floor beside it, leaning his elbows on the edge. Kairi leaned towards Sora, running a hand absently through his spiky brunette locks. "Everything's just fine. How are you feeling?"

Sora shrugged, waving it off. He suddenly turned to his left, looking straight at Riku. "I'm really okay, Riku. You know I've handled worse than this."

Riku smirks at this, though there is still a little worry hidden in the depths of his aqua blue eyes. "I know that. It's just… hard to watch, that's all. It goes against the grain, you know?"

Sora laughs at that, though it sounds more tired than it usually does, and lifts a hand to pat Riku on the head. "I'll be more careful next time."


	6. Gold in the Stillness of the World

**Title:** Gold in the Stillness of the World

**Rating:** K

**Word Count:** 262

**Author's Notes:** Just felt like writing something vague. The first person who can guess what scene in the Kingdom Hearts series this is based on can request something for me to write! Just give a theme and character(s) when you leave a review, please!

**Disclaimer:** Fandom isn't mine

-X-

His breath is loud in the world around him, so still and unmoving

He runs ahead, the road sloping down, and footsteps echoing off the walls

He blinks, distressed, questioning

The world shifts, suddenly, and she appears

She is brilliance in blonde hair and blue eyes framed by a fitted white dress

He stumbles to a stop just in front of her, blinking away the radiance blinding his eyes

She smiles at him, sweetly, and says hello

Somehow, she knows his name

He stutters a hi, rubbing a hand at the back of his neck

She glances around her, unfazed by the stillness of the world

It's an unsettling reminder, and he tries to ask her about it

She raises a hand, stopping him like the world around them

Her hands come together as if in a prayer, fingers together at the very tips

She wanted to meet him, she says, even just once

He rubs the back of his head, not knowing what to say, even if he could

She turns in a swirl of movement and walks away

He wants to call her back, doesn't want her to go

She disappears around the corner, and the stillness goes with her

The town is alive with noise and life, the voices of his friends calling out to him

He shifts, too distressed to take comfort in that

The golden tower looms in the distance, reflecting sun beams through the air

The hand reaches the top, sending the hourly ringing of bells vibrating in his ears

Another day passing, more questions arising…


	7. We Can't Go Back

**Title:** We Can't Go Back

**Characters:** Aerith, Leon, Yuffie, hints of Rinoa Heartily and Vincent Valentine

**Prompt:** LeonYuffie Request for WishingDreamer5

**Word Count: **407

**Author's Notes:** So sorry that this is late, but I don't really ship Leon and Yuffie together, so it took me a long time to try to think of something for them. Hope you like it!

**Disclaimer:** Fandom isn't mine

**-X-**

He's older, now.

They're all older, actually, older and wiser and stronger and no longer stumbling around Traverse Town reeling from the loss of their world and trying to learn how to survive together. The ache of loss is still there, but they've all learned to live with it, and it's easier now that they've returned to their home.

Aerith can see the way Leon – no longer Squall and she sometimes wonders if he'll ever go back – has matured, growing into the lanky stature and broad shoulders that could finally hold the weight of the burden he took upon himself to carry. He's all strong hands and thin, sturdy build, longer hair framing a soft face not so angled by shadows, anymore.

She can see why Yuffie is falling in love with him.

The dark, brooding nature is familiar to her as well, oozing into every part of his being but still kept at bay by the underlying sense of make things better and keep those close to him safe. Leon held himself so tightly, refusing to show any of his pain so openly for them to see, so he could soldier on through the days.

He reminds Yuffie of her first love.

Aerith sees it in the way Yuffie reaches up higher than she needs to when pulling him down for a kiss, as if she's used to reaching for someone far taller than either of them are. It's in the way Yuffie's fingers hover along his arm, as if wanting to tangle her fingers in long hair that isn't there.

And Leon kisses back, because Yuffie reminds him of someone lost as well, with her bright personality and dark hair and moments of insecurity.

The two of them are reaching for something that isn't there, holding onto each other to try and forget the past and embrace each other for the future.

But they are older now, and Aerith sees the doubt in their eyes. They are no longer growing up, have already reached the point where Leon has sprouted into a young man and Yuffie has blossomed into a young woman. Neither of them can grow into what the other wants anymore; can no longer imagine that the other will change if enough time passes.

Aerith worries about them, worries about the letter with the butterfly in Leon's hand and the red cloak hidden under Yuffie's bed, and wonders what will become of them.


	8. Theme 140: Judgement

**Prompt:** judgement  
**Character/Pairing:** Axel, Xion, (akushion)  
**Word Count: **100  
**Authors Notes: **AU; something short and sweet for one of my favorite pairings. Written as part of a drabble challenge.

* * *

Axel's hands are warm when he cups them around her face, tracing his thumb up the line of her jaw as he leans into her space. His breath fans across her face, making her feel light-headed, but she can sense his hesitation, can see the questions lurking in his eyes. Xion understands, knows that this is a culmination of the thing that has been growing between them for the last six months. Axel has taken the initiative, but the final decision rests with her. So Xion smiles, whispering her permission, and leans forward herself to press her lips against his.


	9. Theme 198: Boundaries

**Prompt**: boundaries  
**Character/Pairing:** Axel, mentions of Yen Sid and the three good fairies  
**Word Count: **300  
**Authors Notes:** Set during KH3D, right before a rather defining moment for Axel, so beware potential spoilers. Written as part of a drabble challenge.

* * *

Axel holds himself perfectly still, biting down on all the sarcastic comments that are bubbling up, while the three good fairies wave their wands about and layer him with spell after spell; for protection, Yen Sid explains, voice grave, and while Axel mostly takes him seriously there's still something faintly exasperating about magical sparkles floating in the air and dotting his vision. But he can feel the protection each spell bestows on him, spreading through his body and settling over him like a second skin. It's faintly unsettling, but his discomfort is overshadowed by the need that made these spells a necessity.

Axel can no longer traverse through the corridors of darkness, and the worlds have not opened up their paths to him. He's been training since the moment he arrived at this tower, but the Keyblade will not answer his call. Yen Sid says that he is able to open up a path for him, but there are certain dangers involved; traversing to worlds between realms has never been easy, particularly with one as unstable as the World That Never Was, and it is still possible that the worlds will outright reject him if he tries.

If he had his way, Axel would leave immediately, damn the consequences; the more time he wastes here, the more likely it is that he will miss his chance and the focal point of his future will be lost. But he cannot risk himself unnecessarily in that way, cannot sacrifice the heart that has finally returned to him or sacrifice the promises he's made. Thus, the magic.

So when the fairies finally finish their enchantments, the spells weaving and locking together to form a barrier, Axel is ready; anything else that tries to stand in his way now will be swiftly burned away.


End file.
